Lady Hellgate

by Greg Dragon

Helga ATE was a regular soldier, whose only aspirations were to do well in her military career and make her parents proud. When she and a group of men were sent to defend a settlement of refugees on a distant moon, she discovered a terrible secret that lead to her questioning the very military that she swore her life to. From this confusion and anger came a military career that was nothing short of legendary. Helga ATE is remembered as a warrior, an ace pilot, and a legend in the alliance, but to the Geralos she was remembered for one thing and one thing alone. GENOCIDE.

Lady Hellgate details the life of Helga ATE before the events of the Sixth Expanse and will explain how a tiny woman became the greatest pilot in the Anstractor galaxy.

136 pages, Paperback

First published June 5, 2014

About the author

Greg Dragon brings a fresh perspective to fiction by telling human stories of life, love and relationships in a science fiction setting. This unconventional author spins his celestial scenes from an imagination nurtured from being an avid reader himself. His exposure to multiple cultures, multiple religions, martial arts, and travel lends a unique dynamic to his stories. You can enjoy excerpts from his work by visiting his website at https://gregdragon.com.

Join Greg's mailing list for free stories/books & new releases: http://gregwrites.co
Facebook: http://facebook.com/anstractor
Twitter: http://twitter.com/hobdragon

Reviews

[Jim Liston · Rating 4 out of 5]

On Vestalia, located in the Anastractor galaxy, one in 200 of the Vestalians women have the gift of prescience and are able to dream up visions of the future. They are attacked by the Geralos, an alien race of lizard men, who want to steal this ability. Helga ATE, nicknamed Hellgate, became a legend in the war against the Geralos, known as the “Geralos Vox.” Because of her fierce fighting, the Geralos grew to fear her and it was said that she was “handing out keys to the gates of hell.”

“Lady Hellgate” is the story of Helga ATE’s life, showing how she became the “greatest pilot in the Anstractor Alliance.” It is a fast-paced science fiction adventure that will have you holding on to the edge of your seat! There are intense battle scenes and exciting technology. The aliens use mind control and have human farms to support their hunger for ... Well, never mind, I’ll let you find out for yourself.

[Scott Spotson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is very much like pulp fiction, especially with the choice of cover. Makes me think of the 1950's pulp fiction covers where a there is an oil drawing of a pretty, alluring woman crawling along, the victim of something sinister. And reads like pulp fiction, too, with its emphasis on brutal, bleak warfare. It's not so much that there is a lot of fighting described--although there is still quite a bit--but characters in this book sure put up with a lot, such as betrayal of comrades whose minds have been taken over by aliens, by aliens that are so horrible that many probably would prefer suicide than to constantly fight them, and relentless military excursions (even the civilian population, such as families, has no rest from terror--thank goodness for some of Earth's past empire wars--if there had to be war at all--that focused on military targets and left families alone).

So is it good? Yes and no. It's certainly different, setting out a bleak, pretty much apocalyptic world. I applaud its simple message and its use of a female heroine. Yet, at times, it reads like a biography, rather than a story. Indeed, the book does start with Helga's past, then works its way up through her promotions through the ranks and her current fighting form. And, for me, the book is too bleak to enjoy. I like a bit of wonder and joy in my science fiction, with the winks conferred by the likes of Obi-wan Kenobi and Marty McFly. Poor Helga has no break at all... even her romantic relationships turn out to be traumatic, and there's always a chance her comrades can turn on her, corrupted by the aliens.

One thing I was wondering about... why are three-letter last names of characters capitalized, but any last names more than three letters not capitalized.

[Dee · Rating 4 out of 5]

"For Vestalia!"

An exciting sci-fi adventure and adrenaline high. Amid a time of upheaval and terror, after generations off fighting the Geralos (lizard-like creatures), one young woman rises from the ranks of her Vestalian soldier comrades to become the greatest fighter pilot of all time and do her people proud. This is her story. Her legend in the making.

Intense aerial combat, high emotions, all-out stakes, unspeakable sacrifices. “Such is war,” Helga says at one point as she surveys the devastation to the enemy and to her homeland. And such is the price that Helga will exact to protect her beloved Vestalia. What a cracking read! The only time the pacing slowed was when background information was summarized rather than shown in action, but otherwise, this is a great fast-paced war story about duty, honor, homeland, and the human cost of war.

[Sherry Roberts · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the story of Helga ATE, a grieving girl who joins the Alliance Military and becomes the greatest night hawk pilot in the galaxy. She and her comrades in arms are fighting an alien race of brain-sucking lizard men called the Geralos. Already the invaders have taken over Vestalia, located in the Anastractor galaxy. But they have a new determined enemy, a soldier who is so fierce it is said that she hands out "the keys to hell."

Science fiction fans will enjoy the fast-paced action, the military strategy, the technology, and the battle between the hero soldiers and the traitors in their midst. This is a book about the price of war: the fear, the courage, the betrayal, the weariness. It opens with an aerial dogfight and never lets up.

[Lou · Rating 3 out of 5]

re 'Lady Hellgate'...As per the author: This book is out of print, forever, though Amazon persists to list it on their store thus forcing me to pen this message. - Greg Dragon
Lady Hellgate has been rewritten as a series and can be found by searching for "Last of the Nighthawks" or at author website.

[Shannon Haddock · Rating 2 out of 5]

The main problem with this story was the pacing. Large periods of time, periods where apparently important things were happening, were skipped over. To be bluntly honest, it felt at times like I was reading the author’s notes on the story instead of the story itself because so much was skipped or summarized. This really could’ve been much better if it had been expanded into either a longer book or a series of books, so less time would’ve been skipped and more events shown in greater detail.

The very beginning was the worst part, putting me in mind of a particularly boring history textbook.

Other problems were that the characters didn’t feel very believable, nor did the dialogue. Also, the story itself didn’t make sense at times, though this might’ve just been because so much was summarized that little bits of important information were easy to overlook.

There was also a consistent problem with “was” where “were” should’ve been used, but this was the only grammar problem I spotted.

I found the lengths the author went to to avoid using the words “rape” and “sex” ridiculous. And the summaryish nature of the book made the romance scene seem to come out of nowhere.

On the positive side, the world-building is excellent, and I love the bad guys -- not in a “they are awesome people kind of way”, but in a “wow, these guys are great villains” kind of way.